Mexican police end hijack drama

As if they didn't have enough to worry about with fighting drug cartels, Mexican police have freed more than 100 people unharmed after a jet flying from Cancun to Mexico City was hijacked by a man claiming to be on a divine mission. Bolivian-born Jose Flores Pereira threatened to blow up the plane unless he could warn Mexican President Felipe Calderon of an "impending earthquake".

Mr Flores told flight attendants that a canned drink he had was a bomb. Police stormed the Aeromexico plane after it had landed in Mexico City and women and children were allowed off. Several people were initially arrested and taken away in handcuffs as Mr Flores said he had accomplices, but police later said there had been only one hijacker and no bombs on board.

Flores had told flight attendants that he had three accomplices, "the Father, Son and Holy Ghost". He said that he acted on 9 September 2009, because the numbers 9/9/9 were the inverse of 6/6/6, the number linked to the Anti-Christ. "Christ is coming soon," Mr Flores told journalists.